


Paper Thin Walls (previously Lemonade)

by Something_about_Derek



Category: Sally Face (Video Games)
Genre: Ableism, Ableist Language, Cheating, Domestic Violence, Emotional Abuse, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, I love Travis and he deserves better, In the first chapter, Internalized Homophobia, Larry is such a sweetheart, M/M, Modern AU, Moral Ambiguity, Sexual Assault, Slow Burn, This escalated quickly, but hes an easy antagonist, major canon divergance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-05
Updated: 2019-06-11
Packaged: 2020-03-20 02:12:00
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 3
Words: 9,986
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18983095
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Something_about_Derek/pseuds/Something_about_Derek
Summary: Sal never imagined he would ever kiss anybody, let alone get married to his high school sweetheart. So he treasures Travis, does everything he asks. He cuts back on working to take care of their home and prepare for the children they plan to adopt. He takes out his piercings and dresses more conventionally. He puts out even when he's having a rough mental day. Because he loves Travis.He puts up with all the insults. He deserves the little slaps Trav gives him when he talks back.  Allows Travis into every facet of his life even if it makes him uncomfortable. Because Travis loved him, and he loved Travis.( ON HIATUS TIL DECEMBER)





	1. Silent Car Rides

**Author's Note:**

> Major Trigger Warrnings off the bat: Emotional abuse, minor physical abuse, domestic violence, sexual abuse and assault, implied rape/non-con, ableist slurs.
> 
> Sorry this is so dark from the get go, but it will be getting worse in future chapters.
> 
> Uploaded from mobile so sorry for any formatting issues.

“Y’know Sal, we aren't kids anymore.” Sal’s beloved husband, Travis said leaning in the doorway to their shared bedroom, “ Maybe you should take those piercings out for this dinner.”

Now, Sal was a practical man. He knew exactly when too much was too much. As a frequent cross dresser he was very critical of his wardrobe. He knew what to wear and when to wear it. It was this discretion that lead him to wear his current baby blue button-up, navy slacks, and polished black dress shoes. His long blue hair tucked neatly into a bun. Sal looked good and he knew it. However his husbands comment made him pause. Was he too old for his piercings? 

He only had two holes in his earlobes that held plain black studs. He had gotten the first set as a high school freshman in Jersey. Dared to do it by the people he had called friends at the time. He liked the look so much he got his second set done with Ash and Todd his junior year. Now that he was almost 23 was it time to take them out? Would Travis’ boss really mind that much? 

“ Are you sure? Devin hasn't said anything about it before.” The shorter man asked looking over at his husband. 

“ He hasn't said anything to you about it Sal. But he's mentioned it. Even the other guys in the office laugh about it sometimes.” The blond hissed out. Travis had chosen to take sentry in the doorway, back pressed into the frame. His honey hazel eyes filled to the brim with annoyance and disappointment. He looked like a tired father scolding a petulant child.

“ How do you think that makes me feel? I spend 40 hours a week with these men. I'm a laughing stock to them because my husband looks so childish all the time.”

“ I'm sure your misreading the situation, babe. Devin and they guys aren't exactly timid. I'm sure they would bring it up to me if it actually bothered them”

“ What the hell is that supposed to mean? You think I'm overreacting or some shit? Because trust me Sally Face I can tell when someone is laughing at me. I'm not fucking blind.”

“ That's not what I'm saying at all--”

“ Why are you fighting me so much on this!? It's just hunks of plastic and I'm only asking you take them out for the night! I don't think I'm asking too much! “

“Well they might just be ‘ hunks of plastic’ but I like the way they look. I don't think anyone notices them enough for it to be an issue”

“ Fucking thanks, Sally. I ask you to do something so fucking simple for me, so I look better in front of my co-workers! But that's too much, isn't it? The princess needs her precious fucking earrings!”

Sal had to ask himself was this argument worth it? They had a nice night on the town planned. Drinks and dinner with Travis’ boss and co-workers. Travis might have been right. They were just earrings, he probably shouldn't let them get in the way of their good night. However a tiny microscopic part of him wanted to refuse and fight more. The edgy teen metalhead in him would fight that it's his right to express himself as much as he wanted. But he wasn't a teen anymore. Why ruin their good night over something so small? 

So with a sigh Sal lifted his hands to ears and began undoing the metal clasps to his earring. Hands that used to be freshly manicured and painted black at all times until Travis convinced him it was a waste of time and money. He didn't want to argue then and he didn't want to argue now. Travis didn't seem the slightest bit appeased. His posture was still stiff and closed off in the doorway. 

“ So...that's it?” Travis sneered. His glare firmly set on his husbands figure. He moved out of his lean on the door frame and slowly made his way into the room to stand before Sal.

“ So...is what it?” Sal retorted while dispensing his earrings next to his glass of saline solution on his bedside table. 

“ So, no apology at all?” The blond humorlessly laughed. He stepped even closer to the shorter man. Invading Sal's personal space.“ You want to ignore my concerns, be a nuisance, and cause us to be late to dinner with my boss? And not even a half-assed sorry!?”

“ We won't be late, Trav. We have like an hour to get there.”

Sal couldn't help but gasp at the sudden movement. In a blink of an eye Travis had fisted the collar of Sal's button up and yanked the smaller man even closer. They now stood chest to chest and Sal could feel his husbands cool minty breath on his face and neck. Normally Sal would shiver in pleasure being so close to Travis. However, now was not the case. tension  
kneaded at the smaller man's guts. Something was very wrong. 

“ You better fucking hope we aren't a second late, Sal. I will not be made a fool of in front of the man that signs my checks.” Sal looked up into his husbands eyes and saw rage. Hot simmering rage. Sal had never seen Travis so angry before. A twinge of fear ran down his spine as the taller man retreated as fast as he had grabbed Sal. 

“ I'm going to go start the car.” Travis said as he picked a hair off of his sleeve. He then left the room, but not before sending Sal one last murderous glare. “And change your shirt. That ones wrinkled.”

Sal could only wide-eye stare the space Travis use to occupy. Dread slowly dripped down into his stomach. Questions raced around in his mind as he tried to piece together what just happened. 

Travis had always been a brash and confrontational person, even when they first met. Especially when the first met. Back then he had been a devout Christian boy confused by his budding feelings for a member of his same sex. He had a phase where he would pick on Sal and sling playground insults. But back then all it had taken to drop the blonds defenses was a steady calm voice and gentle reassurances. 

However, the man Sal had married was never so cold, so hateful, so belligerent. It made Sal question himself. Was he actually the problem here? He must have been to warrant such a strong reaction from the other. But it all seemed so trivial. This argument, the one the had a few nights ago, the past few months really. Something was shifting in their dynamic, and Sal couldn't put his finger on what the cause was. All he could do was tepidly step on eggshells.

Sal slowly unbuttoned the button up he coordinated with his outfit and shrugged it off. He opened their shared closet in tossed the shirt into the hamper. It was far from dirty, but he didn't have time to press out the wrinkles Travis had left on the collar and refold it. He grabbed his second choice, the other button up he had been considering for tonight. He could only sigh because he had decided against this one due to its dark color. It was black. The exact color Travis had been nagging him to lessen in his wardrobe. He couldn't win. 

He threw it on and buttoned it up as fast as he could. Fearing he was taking to long. He grabbed his wallet of his night table to shove into his back pocket. And before he could leave he glanced back into their shared bedroom in their tiny apartment. It was depressingly bare. Only a queen sized bed, two night tables, two lamps, and a dresser. No framed pictures or trinkets. He was torn. He was happy to leave the space for the night, but something told him the alternative wouldn't be worth it. He hope this feeling was wrong and they could finally have a good night together. 

Please? 

\---

Lucky for the masked man someone was listening to his pathetic pleading and choose to give him mercy. They made it to the agreed bar with minutes to spare. The car ride was painful tense and quite, but he counted it as a win since Travis didn't try to pick another fight. And he counted another win when Travis stepped out of the car and closed the door without slamming it. 

Sal hopped out from his side of their car and made his way over to the drivers side. Something was wrong and Sal wanted to at least acknowledge it before they entered the restaurant. His husbands face was still stern, but over the duration of their ride some of the anger had dissipated. Sal stepped into Travis’ space, effectively stopping him from making his way into the building. The blonde pursed his lips and gave Sal a once-over as if ask ‘what do you want now?’. 

“Look Trav, I'm sorry for earlier.” Sal sighed as he took his husbands hands in his own. “ But, I didn't really understand why you were so adamant about my earrings. I should have just asked instead of getting defensive.”

Travis’s face softened at the apology. He in turn intertwined his fingers with Sal. Their eyes met which further melted the taller mans firm expression, his lips twitching upwards in the start of a smile. This was much more like the person Sal fell in love with. They had come so far from neglected and abused little boys that sometimes Sal forgot that the trauma still affected them both to this day. Sal still had days were leaving his bed was a daunting task despite being on antidepressants for years. 

“ I'm sorry too, Sally. It's just Devin's assistant left the newspaper recently and his position is open. I want to make a really good impression and maybe prove I'm worthy of a promotion.” Travis lower his eyes to their joined hands. “ I'm getting tired of reporting on town hall meetings and copy editing. If I become the editors assistant I can suggest more interesting stories and become a more important part of the team.”

“ Trav… I didn't realize how important this was to you. I'm sorry I didn't just take your request seriously.” Sal only half meant it. Now that Sal had a little bit to process what had transpired he realized that Travis had blown things way out of proportion. But he also realized that his husband had exploded due to stress. Travis was absolutely horrible under pressure, always had been. He had a tendency to forcibly control a situation if he was unsure and therefore scared of an outcome. Something he hoped he would work on but now was not the time. 

“ No Sal, it isn't all your fault. I gotta admit I got a little more heated then I should have.” Sal wanted to roll his eye at the response but only smiled in return. A little heated was a understatement. Sal remembered the intense look of malice that struck genuine fear into him. Travis was downplaying what happened a little to much. But at least he was acknowledging that his reaction was unwarranted and was heading in the right direction. Maybe they could discuss this further later on and Sal could explain his concerns. But not now. Travis was dead set on making a good impression with his boss tonight and waiting any longer outside the restaurant would make them late. So Sal stepped back from their embrace and grinned up at the blond, hoping his emotions shone through the restrictions of his mask. 

“All's forgiven, baby. Let's go in and impress the shit out of your boss!”  
\----

Sal took the initiative to drive them both home after dinner even when he wasn't technically legally allowed to. He didn't have or could never get a driver's license due to only having one functioning eye. However, Travis had been drinking and it was late enough that he only had to share the road with a few other cars. The masked man had always enjoyed the few opportunities he got to drive because it always made him feel normal. Made him feel like he didn't have to take 10 pills a day and have to clean his prosthetic and glass eye on the regular. 

This time with Sal behind the wheel there was music softly playing from the radio. This was Travis’ car so it was already tuned into some gospel station. It wasn't something he would listen to himself, preferring heavier stuff, but it was better than silence. The air felt so much lighter after a night of laughter and shitty chain restaurant appetizers. It was almost like their small altercation earlier never even happened. He couldn't wait to end the pleasant night with gentle cuddles before going to bed. Travis however had other ideas. 

It started with the taller man setting his hand on the other’s knee. Sal took his eye off the road for a moment to give Travis a smile he probably couldn't see behind the mask. Travis was able to recognize the squinting of his eyes as a smile so he smiled back. It made him feel comforted in the moment. However the hand slowly moved up his thigh over time, so slowly Sal hadn't even notice the movement until he felt a squeeze on his upper thigh. He instantly felt uneasy from that one squeeze. He glanced at his husband once again, but this time he was staring out of the window with a cheeky grin on his face. 

Sal snapped his attention back to the road and pushed down on the gas pedal a little harder. They faster they got home the less likely this would escalate. However they were at least ten minutes away from the apartments and Travis didn't look like he intended to stop. In fact Sal could feel his husband gently rub circles into his inner thigh with his thumb. Sal unfortunately had a very sensitive body due to the lack of physical affection in his childhood and formative years. So despite not being particularly in the mood he could feel the heat slowly starting to build. 

He wanted so bad to remove the hand from his lap, but he was scared to take his hands off the wheel. He knew if he rejected the advancements a drunken Travis wouldn't take it so well. Maybe if his partner were sober he could just say he was tired and they would do it tomorrow since it was the weekend and everything would be dandy. But now that he's had a few to drink being shot down would offend him very much and he would accuse Sal of not being attracted to him. That however was not the case, he just wasn't a very sexual person. 

As a teen, the peak of being horny for no reason, Sal could go months without feeling any arousal in the slightest. It got to the point where he suspected he was asexual, but after starting to date Travis he learn that probably wasn't it or not entirely the case. He was told by his psychiatrist that it was most likely a side effect of his antidepressants. Antidepressants he's been on for as long as he can remember. Even now as an adult he found it hard to become mentally aroused. However his body would react even if he really just wanted to curl up and die. 

So when Travis started brushing his thumb against the smaller man's junk, he whimpered at the contact and tighter his grip on the steering wheel. He could feel Travis’ eyes suddenly on him, watching his reactions. The blond man repeated the motion rougher and smirked wider as he felt Sal begin to harden under his touch. Sal's blood ran cold at the feeling and he flinched. He didn't want this right now. He just wanted to go to bed. 

“ You’re so sensitive, Sally Face.” Travis commented. His voice was lowered and took on a seductive tone. Normally Sal would melt under that voice but tonight he was done. But for some reason he was stuck. He couldn't move his eye from starting dead ahead and the road and he couldn't move his death grip from the wheel. “ You’re always so ready for me, baby. Such a perfect little slut.”

He shuddered and let out another whimper as he felt his husband fully palm his cock through the front of his pants. Travis must have mistaken this response as pleasure because he moan in turn and started to throw more perverse comments at the smaller man. Sal felt his mind beginning to fog up, his consciousness desperate to escape the current situation in anyway it could. He didn't know what to do or how to get out of the situation so his mind was making an attempt to leave his body. However he knew if he allowed himself to fully disassociate he would end up wrapping Travis car around a pole. So it took a few moments nd a few deep breaths to calm himself, but in a small shaky voice he was able to speak.

“ H-Hey, babe...W-Why don’t we wait until we get h-home for this?”. He hated that he sounded so weak, but it was really all he could do. The hand on his crotch stopped at the question and Sal almost sighed in relief.

“Why, what's wrong?” Travis asked. He didn't take his hand away.

“ I-I’m just getting t-too distracted…”

“ That's kinda the point, baby. I want you all hot and bothered.”

“ O-Okay…But I-I should really be focusing on the road right now.”

“ Can’t you just pull over if your so concerned?” Travis asked in an annoyed tone. Sal gulped and scrambled for something to say to ease the blond man before he got angry again. 

“ B-But don't you want to do it in o-our nice soft bed?” Sal asked attempting to inject a flirty tone into his voice. He looked around at his surroundings and knew that it was another 5 minutes until they would be at the apartments. He didn't know if he could curb his husbands wrath until then. And according to the scoff that Travis let out in response to his question he probably couldn't.

“ No. I want you right fucking now, Sally. Pull over if you’re so scared.” And with that he continued his ministrations. A disgusted shudder racked through Sal's body, making him visibly tremble. Where there was once a forced aroused warmth in his stomach an acidic nauseous feeling took hold. His repulsion was overriding his bodies natural reaction to being touched in this way. He started to soften despite the rough strokes he was receiving. 

“P-Please…”

Travis must have felt his bodies rejection to his advancements because once again his hand stopped. Sal only had a split second to look over as the blonds other hand grabbed his face and roughly turned his head to look at him. The darkest expression sat on Travis face, furrowing his brows pulling his mouth down into the fiercest scowl. In a panic Sal slammed the breaks and they both lurched forward. Blunt fingernails dug into the scarred skin under Sal's prosthetic and he hissed. 

“What the fuck is wrong with you!? Are you trying to kill us!?” Travis screamed into Sal's face. Sal winced and tries to escape the taller man's grasp but it only got tighter. 

“ I-I-I c-couldn't s-see!” Sal tried to reason. This wasn't his fault. He just wanted to get home safely. 

“ Of course you couldn't see you crippled bitch! I should have never let you drive my fucking car.” Travis spat. The venom in his tone was clear.

“ Y-You’re d-drunk, Travie!” Sal pleaded. Tears were beginning to pool in the corner of his eyes. 

“ I'm not drunk. I barely had anything to drink. Even if I was I could have gotten us home so much faster than you. Since you wanna wait until our neighbors can hear us to fuck.” Travis sneered condescendingly. Sal gasped at that accusation. He wanted nothing of the sort. He didn't even want to have sex right now. 

“ T-That's not it--”

“ Fine. If that's what you want. I'll fuck you so hard everyone in that disgusting building will hear you.” Travis unbuckled his seatbelt and threw the passenger side door open. Sal gawked in horror as he watched his husband get out and stumble around the front of the car. He quickly glanced around them and even thought they were in the middle of the right lane no car and approaching. Travis tugged the drivers side door open and glared down at the masked man. Travis reached over him and attempted to unbuckle his seatbelt. “Get out of the car, Sal.”

“Travie, p-please don’t do t-this. I-it's not safe.” Hot embarrassed tears spilled over and ran down his cheek. He batted Travis’s hands away in an attempt to get him to stop. His mind was scrambling for a way to defuse the situation. What was he supposed to do? How did he get this to stop? 

“ Shut the fuck up and get out of the car. It's more dangerous for you to drive. You don't even have a fucking license!” Travis took both of Sals wrists in one of his hands and squeezed tight until Sal stopped struggling. With they other he unbuckled the seatbelt. 

“ T-Trav, baby! P-Please. Please. L-Listen to me!” Sal sobbed out. Voice breaking around every syllable. This finally made Travis hesitate. Everything was still for a moment before Travis grabbed his face again. He forced their eyes to meet.

“ Or do you want me to fuck you here, on the side of the road, like a filthy whore?” Travis growled. 

“ N-No...I-I”

“ Then get out of the fucking car.”

\---

Sal stared at the numbers on their alarm clock as he felt a certain weight roll off of him. He was currently laying on his back on soiled sheets, reading the time over and over with a red puffy eye and irritated eye socket. His face had been torn off and discarded onto the floor amongst tonight's clothes. However, his glass eye was left in as he cried. It always became itchy and uncomfortable if left in for too long and at this point it had been in for almost 15 hours. 

It was 2am on a Saturday morning. Good. At least he didn't have to go to work after what had happened. The weekend would give his bruises time to fade so they wouldn't be as obvious to his co-workers. He sighed in relief that he was at least getting a little bit of mercy from the universe. And maybe a bit more as he heard snoring start up next to him. Another sigh as he felt his body finally relax after hours of being tense. 

He wanted to drift to sleep himself but he knew trying would be fruitless. Closing his eyes would just bring the memory of what just happened to the forefront of his mind. So he just watched the little red numbers flash and change as time went by. Around 2:43 he heard the door to their bedroom open followed by a grumpy meow. He strained his ears to hear the pat pat pat of tiny paws on carpet as Gizmo rounded the bed to Sal's’ side.

Despite Gizmo being several pounds overweight he managed to gracefully jump from the floor up onto the bed. Sal glanced from his stare at the alarm clock to watch. Gizmo then gave Sal a show of sniffing around and kneading at the pillow under his head before curling into a ball, fluffy tail directly in Sal's face. A giggle escaped from Sal, breaking him out of his somber mood if just for a moment. 

“ Good Night, Gizmo.”

“ Meow”

“ I love you too, buddy.”


	2. Bonding over Skin Mags

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, guys! I changed the fics title to Paper Thin Walls! Lemonade was in reference to a Nicole Dollanganger song of the same name. I wanted the fic name and all chapter names to be references so her songs but it wasn't working out too well. So I hope this one is more thematically fitting. 
> 
> I'm so surprised I was able to churn out another chapter so quickly. This one is a lot more lighthearted and cute.

Despite nearly everyone he knew had experienced it, no one had warned Larry Johnson about what he liked to call; The quarter-life crisis. It seemed to be a phenomenon in 20 to 25 year olds where no one knew what they were doing, what was happening, or where they should be going. He assumed with the billions of human beings that had lived on this earth before him that someone would have written a book on the subject. However Larry quickly learned that life didn't have a manual or a rule book and literally everyone was faking it. 

The brunet had thought he was doing fine until he entered his last year of art school, where he thought he would thrive in the freedom to do and create what he wished. However he quickly learned how little discipline and time management skills he possessed when he didn’t complete project after project, started skipping classes due to embarrassment, and started drinking during the day. And he had absolutely no one to kick his ass into shape like he did back in Nockfell. So eventually his grades got so bad he was put on academic probation, his course advisor kept insisting he take summer classes to catch up, and financial aid revoked his federal loans. 

With absolutely no way to pay for the rest of his education without signing his soul to a private loan office and their impossible interest rates, Larry packed his meager belongings and headed home. Lisa had been disappointed but empathetic and invited him back to live with her while he recouped and developed a new plan of action. However the metal heads pride wouldn't allow him to move back in with his mom. He adored his mother, but he was a grown ass man now. He managed to get into college on his own, and lived on his own for the past 3 and a half years. But even with the ability to live on his own he couldn't really afford anything other than Addison’s. 

So here he was. Sitting in the parking lot of his childhood home. Smoking his third cigarette of the day in the cab of his beat up pick up truck. He thought he would be happy to be back home, but just being here while class was in session was a reminder of his failures. He would need to text his mom he had arrived soon. But it could wait until he finished this cigarette. Maybe even the next. 

He scanned the parking lot with his half lidded dark brown eyes. He knew 75% of the vehicles in the lot and their respective owners. Like Mr. And Mrs. Morrisons bright yellow Volkswagen Beetle and David's old rusty Lincoln Continental with taped up windows. But in the farthest space from building was a fairly new silver BMW Passat. It was certainly a black sheep in the lot of older and dirty cars. For a moment Larry wondered who in the building owned such a decent car and when they moved in. 

But the temptation of wallowing in his own pity brought his eyes back to staring at the worn down and possibly condemnable apartment building. He couldn't help but feel shame for ending up back here after fighting so hard to leave. After breaking his mom's heart by making a clean break the second he had the money to go. But he couldn't go back and change what happened and there was literally nowhere else on the planet he could go. So he would have to swallow a bit of his pride and head inside. 

Just after this next cigarette. 

\---

It took another hour of sitting and two more cigarettes before Larry could text his mom and alert her that he was outside. He was actually able to watch Chug come back home from work and hope the large man didn't see Larry increasing his chances of developing lung cancer. In that time he was able to settle his troubled mind just enough to pretend he was okay. He doubt it would be good to greet his mother with his depression and self loathing. So before he could talk himself out of it and into smoking yet another clove he shot his mother a text and exited his truck. 

He lifted his arms above his head and attempted to stretch out all the knots he developed by shoving his long limbs into the truck cab. He knew people in that past that admitted being jealous of his height, and he could never understand why. He couldn't fit anywhere and permanently messed up his back by sleeping on a tiny college dorm bed for 3 years. But now that he was renting a place of his own maybe he could finally sleep on a bed his size. Thinking of the liberties we would be able to take advantage of now he was out of school brightened his mood slightly. 

He made his way up the crack riddled sidewalk towards the building. The familiar sensation of unease grew in the pit of his stomach and he knew he was home. Addison’s was a den of death and evil energy. Larry had witnessed the murder of Mrs. Sanderson when he was around fifteen while unclogging her toilet. He attempted to tell the police the perpetrator had been another resident, Charlie Mansfield, but with zero proof they quickly dismissed his claims. More events of drug deals, domestic violence, and death followed after. It was one of the reasons he was so eager to leave in the first place. He was afraid if he didn't he would die in that building. He could feel that fear quickly returning. 

 

Larry had been interrupted from his thoughts when he heard a familiar voice call out his name. His mom was rushing towards him with the biggest smile he'd ever seen on her face and tears in the corner of her eyes. It hadn't even been four months since he last saw her, but he had missed her incredibly. He outstretched his arms and let her barrel her thin delicate frame into his own. She wrapped her arms around his middle and squeezed as hard as she could, and his mother was deceptively strong for her figure. He had to force out a laugh to hide the yelp of pain he nearly let out. 

“ I'm glad to see you too, Ma. But it like to keep my spine intact.” Larry joked but was rewarded when the woman loosened her embrace enough so he could get a full breath again. 

“ Oh, hush! I missed you so much!” His mother giggled into his chest. His heart melted at her words. He couldn't deny how much he loved his mom and how happy he was to see her. He just wished it was due to a better situation. Ideally at his graduation or his first gallery show. 

“ I missed you too.” He sighed and rested his chin on the top of her head. He looked down and noticed all the new strands of grey in her hair since he last saw her. He hoped they weren't caused by stress. He hoped they weren't caused by her worrying about him. She deserved nothing but peace and happiness. She deserved a better son. 

He could feel his mood dropping yet again, but like an angel his mom interrupted his intrusive thoughts. “ You've grown so much, Larry! I can barely recognize you!” She said as she pulled away to look at him. He chuckled at her comment. He had visited for Christmas and New Years just a few months prior and she had said the same thing. 

“ You saw me in January, Ma. I look exactly the same.” He responded with a lazy grin.

“ Exactly the same, my foot!” She exclaimed and reached up to touch his face. She began to run her fingers over the beard he’d grown due to the lack of hygiene. “Look at all that scruff. You didn't have a beard the last time I saw you.”

“ Ha. Yeah. Just wanted to see how it would look on me.” The lie flew out of his mouth before he could even think of it. It had been such a rough few months he'd completely neglected anything that wasn't smoking or listening to music all day, to the annoyance of his dorm mate. But he didn't want his mom to worry.

“ You should shave it off. You look so handsome clean shaven.” She patted his chin. 

“ Ma!” He made a face and feigned embarrassment at the attention but he wholeheartedly agreed. Not only was the facial hair itchy but it made him look homeless. 

“ And you smell like a chimney. You really need to kick that nasty habit.” She said smacking his chest. Guilty weighed down where her hand had landed. Lisa always brought up his smoking habit and her wish for him to quit. Which was understandable, even he noticed the slight decline in his health since he started smoking regularly. If he wasn't careful his teeth would start to turn yellow and he was developing a cough. But he was very clearly addicted and didn't have to heart to quit cold turkey.

“ Yeah, I know. I've been trying to quit.” He sighed again. And he had been before his return from Christmas break. But the stress of flunking out of school had cut that attempt short. 

“ Try harder. Now let's go inside. It's too cold out here.” His mother said before wiggling out of his embrace. They walked side by side up the ancient concrete path until reaching the entrance where Larry opened the door for his mom.

“ Oh what a gentleman!” She cooed at him before entering the building. Larry rolled his eyes. He was probably the farthest thing from a gentleman. 

He hesitated before following her in. The same sense of dread he felt earlier came back full force. He knew that being back in this building immediately put him in danger. Another crazed resident like Charlie was all it would take and he would be dead. It didn't help that everyone pretended that the constant threat of pain and misfortune existed, probably to protect their own happiness. But it was too late. Larry had months to clean up his act and get back on track with his senior projects. But he had failed to do so and was now paying the price. Before he could chicken out he slipped into the building and shut the door behind him.

Lisa was waiting in the middle of the lobby with a quizzical expression on her face. She had noticed her sons pause to enter and opened her mouth to comment, but Larry interrupted before she could. He didn't want to talk about how badly he didn't want to be here. 

“So what room am I in?” The metalhead asked. He had basically done the new tenant application thought his mom as she was a direct contact to Terrance Addison, the agoraphobic owner of Addison Apartments. And it so happened that Terrance had given him a discount on rent due to the fact he was sure Larry would help his mother with maintenance work if she ever needed it. Or the old tenants would come to him for help if they couldn't reach Lisa in the first place. He had wanted to refuse the offer at first, but he knew he would help if anyone asked and why not take some weight off his wallet? Because of her active involvement she had received his keys and documented the condition of the unit before move in for him. Keys she handed to him before she answered.

“ 401. Robert moved out a few months ago to go with his girlfriend. She's such a sweet girl. I think she's really good for him” She replied as she pressed the button to call for the elevator. 

“ Rad. It's good to hear he found someone. He was always a nice dude.” Larry fidgeted with the lighter in his pocket. The doors of the elevator opened and they both stepped inside. He got an itchy feeling under his skin as the doors closed, trapping them inside. Larry despised the elevator, it was terribly small and silent. It felt like an oversized coffin. However it was the only way to go floor to floor so he would have to suck it up. 

“Mhm. It was sad to see him go. He moved in a little bit after you started high school.” His mom pressed the button for the 4th floor. 

“ Oh man that's right. That's crazy he was here for almost 8 years.”

“ Oh Larry you know that's not very long to us. We’ve been here for almost 14 years, remember? And I think Rosenberg was here for at least a century years before she passed.” Lisa joked but Larry could only cringe at the memory of Rose. The old woman had died peacefully in her sleep, but it was a reminder of how much death has occurred in this building.

“ Yeah, your right.” Larry wanted to change the topic.“ Wait, does that mean I get the whole 4th floor to myself?”

“ No, no quite. Newlyweds moved in about six months ago. You'll be right next to them.”

“ Oh cool. What are they like?”

“ I don't really know. They keep to themselves most of the time and haven't asked me to fix anything yet.” 

“ Oh that's sort of strange. Not even a clogged toilet?”

“ No. Sometimes I see one of them checking the mail from time to time. I can't remember his name thought. Sam maybe?”

“ Well I guess I'll meet them eventually.”

“ Most likely. If they’re good people invite them to dinner with us sometime.”

“ Will do.” Larry agreed as the door opened once again. He let his mom exit first be he followed close behind. He wanted out of that death trap. Unfortunately he would have to go back multiple times to transport all of his stuff from his truck. He was not looking forward to that. 

They entered his unit and gave it a once over. He thanked his mom as she was no doubt the person that cleaned it for him. And now that the door was unlocked the would need to go back downstairs to grab all of his stuff. 

“ Are you ready?” Lisa asked her son. Larry groaned but nodded. The faster they started they sooner they would be finished he supposed.  
\----  
It was two hours and a million trips up the elevator of death before they were just about done. Lisa had tried to keep his things organized and put the boxes and bags in the correct rooms as they went along, but Larry had admitted he had just thrown his stuff in boxes. She hadn't been very impressed. Almost nothing had been organized or labeled so they just left everything in the living room. 

He only had a box left to bring up so he told his mom he had it so she could go start dinner and he would be down to join her shortly. He loved his mom, but being around another person mixed with heavy lifting was exhausting him very quickly. His stomach was also starting to grumble embarrassing loud and he wanted to eat as soon as possible. So he quickly went back down to his truck to grab the last of his possessions. 

He quickly regretted his decision to shoo his mom away. The last box was a large one with his stereo, record player, all his CDs, and all his vinyl's. He wanted to kick past him for putting his entire music collection in just one box. He cursed as he lifted the box with his back and felt the promise of intense pain by the time he made it back to his room. But he kept it moving and made his way back to the building. He only struggled with the door for a minute but it was enough for his back to give up and as soon as he entered the lobby he felt the box slip from his grasp.

“ SHIT!” Larry yelped, convinced his precious music collect was going crash onto the floor, destroying everything thing that gave his life meaning. He snapped his eyes shut so he didn't have to witness the carnage. But moments went by without a sickening crunch or a loud bang. Larry slowly opened his chocolate brown eyes to see an icy blue pair staring up at him. It took his exhausted brain a moment to catch up to what just happened but when he did his eyes widened further. A short petite person with wavy blue hair had caught the box before it fully left his grasp and was holding the other end. 

“ Woah, man. Careful.” The person...man(?) said in a soft breathy voice. Larry’s mind was still lagging behind and he could only stare down at the person. From what he could see they were wearing a band t-shirt and black sweatpants. And the most noticeable feature was the porcelain white expressionless mask that hid everything but the bluest eyes Larry had ever seen. 

“ You good, dude?” The smooth yet raspy voice spoke again. Larry realized how rudely he had to be staring at this stranger. And with his current haggard appearance he must have looked super creepy. 

“Oh yeah, man. Thank you.” Larry had to will himself to look anywhere but into the strangers eyes. For some reason his heart was beating out of control and it took extra effort to understand what the stranger was saying to him. 

“ Need help bringing this upstairs?” The short person asked cheerful. It sounded like a genuine want to help rather than an obligation to be polite. Larry was about to open his stupid mouth and refuse the help but the ache in the small of his back protested otherwise. 

“Um, If you don't mind. I would really appreciate it.”

“ Of course man. I just moved in not to long ago and it was a nightmare.” 

The shorter man slowly stepped backwards into the lobby while keeping his firm grip on the box. He was forced to do the awkward looking over the shoulder while walking backwards thing and Larry instantly felt bad. His guy was probably on his way out to go do something or just check his mail. Yet he was here helping Larry out, a loser who couldn't even pick up a box correctly. However with the mans help it didn't take long before they were able to lug the box into the elevator and carefully set it into the ground. 

“ Which floor are you headed to?” The short man asked as he pointed at the elevator buttons. Now that there wasn't a giant heavy box between them he could now see the ratty and well loved Sisters of Mercy t-shirt the other was wearing. Larry couldn't help but notice how utterly adorable this stranger was. 

“ Uh, F-Forth. Thanks, dude.” His response was delayed. He must have looked so fucking creepy. Standing more than a head taller, staring way too much, barely able to string words together, and ruddy cheeks under a patchy beard to tie it all together. He wouldn't have wanted to interact with himself if put into this strangers situation. He would have probably pretended not to see the dumbass carrying more than he possibly could and ran away. He had to get away as quickly as possible. But the stranger had other plans for him today.

“ Oh so you’re our new neighbor! I'm Sal. Nice to meet you.” Sal offered his hand to the other. He was lucky enough that his brain could understand this very basic social cue and he was able to take the masked man's hand in his and give it a shake. But then very very unlucky to feel how soft Sal's hand was. 

“ Nice to meet ya, Sal. I'm Larry. But I wouldn't say I'm new here.” The brunette was able to say with some sense of normalcy. This guy was affecting him so much by just existing. He’d never been so attractive to a person he’d just meet. Sure he’d seen a cute guy or girl and get a little flustered. But for some reason this Sal guy was making his mind short circuit. 

“ Oh? That sure wasn't ominous or anything.” Sal jokes but it still set Larry on edge. He knew he looked incredibly creepy. Sal didn't need to point it out. But he forced a chuckle and tried to clarify in a casual manner. 

“ Y-Yeah. I grew up here in this building. This is just coming back home for me.” Larry said. Sal's eyes slightly widened in what seemed like interest. 

“ Dude that's really cool. Back from college I assume?” The shorter man asked. He was technically right, but it struck a heart cord for Larry. Dropping out was incredibly shameful to him as neither of his parents had gone to college themselves. His mom was very sad to see him go, but also extremely proud of him for working towards a degree. His chest began to hurt remembering how disappointed she sounded on the phone when he broke the news. It took a moment but he responded.

“ You could say that...” Larry sighed. He didn't want to lie to his neighbor. Lying just wasn't his thing. But he also didn't want to admit to such a cute guy how big of a fucking loser he was. ‘You don't need to admit it. He can already see it’ Larry thought to himself. 

However a certain sparkle flashed in Sal's eyes for a moment before he gave Larry a once over. The taller man couldn't help but tense under the others scrutiny. However a look of understanding settled over the masked man's visible features and he began to speak again. 

“ Say no more. As a fellow drop out I know how embarrassing it can be talking to people about it. I about died at my last family gathering.” He said reassuringly. Larry's eyebrows turned up in surprise. Sal chuckled and continued. “ It's nothing to be ashamed of, really. College isn't for everyone. But I totally get how hard it can be to talk about with other people.” 

“ Oh man, dude, you don't know how bad I needed to hear that.” Larry could feel a bit of warmth on his cheeks. He nervously rubbed at the back of his neck. Of course this really cute helpful dude is also the most understanding person on the planet. Larry was fucked. “Y-Yeah, I completely agree. It's like you know that in the grand scheme of things it doesn't really matter. Like, you're your own person and you don't have to do things they way people expect. In fact a lot of people are able to find really awesome jobs without a degree. But you can't help be feel left behind.”

“ Dude! Get out of my head! That's almost exactly how I felt when I first stopped going to school!” Excitement lit up in Sals eyes and he began to bounce on the heels of his feet. It seemed like he wanted to say more but he was cut off by the ding of the elevator and the metallic whirring of the doors opening. “ Ah. We’re here.” Sal said with a disappointed tint to his voice. 

Larry squat down to pick the box back up, mindful to keep his back straight and lift with his legs. Sal in turn mirrored the taller mans motions on the other side of the box a bit clumsily. Larry again shot Sal a look of surprise, but was only met with the determined blue eyes of the other. 

“ Alright. I'm ready when you are.” The shorter man said in a serious tone. Larry had to suppress the laughter at seeing such a small guy so intense. ‘He's so cute’ Larry thought to himself. Then promptly started blushing at the thought. 

“Oh no dude. Don't worry. I don't want to take up anymore of your time.” Larry declined. He was honestly super grateful for the help. He seriously owed Sal for saving his sound systems and giant music collection. But this entire encounter has repeatedly reminded him of how creepy and unkempt he was in front of such a kind attractive person. He wanted them to part ways as soon as possible so he could lock himself away for eternity. 

“ Nonsense. I was just checking my empty ass mailbox. I got all day to help you move this box.” Sal responded cheerfully. 

“ Oh I hope it doesn't take all day. I'm exhausted as it is.” Larry chuckled at his own lame ass joke. 

“ Besides I'm curious on what the hell is in this box! Is it rocks? It feels like rocks.” Sal said while carefully shaking the box and listening to the contents rattle inside. Like a kid on Christmas morning. Did this guy have the ability to not be cute? 

“ Hell yeah man. This is my healing crystal collection.” Larry said with a snort. Part of him wanted this interaction to end so he could go die in a hole somewhere. The other part of him wanted to talk to Sal forever. And he currently didn't know which to listen to. 

“ Seriously what's in here? Skin mags? You look like the kind of guy that would have a huge selection.” Sal said in a teasing tone before he realized what he had just said. Larry looked down at the smaller man in surprise, his eyes widening and his lips parting slightly. The masked man looked up at Larry with big mortified eyes. Larry watched the other man's eyes filter through several emotions, like shock and embarrassment, before ending on fear. There was a long pause before Larry broke and busted out in laughter. The kind of laughter that made tears come to your eyes and hurts your side. It took a few moments of Larry's boisterous laughter before Sal let out a few giggles of his own. 

“ You’re a pretty alright dude, Sal. I think we're gonna get along just fine.” Larry said when he finally caught his breath. Sal's shoulders were still stiff with unease. Larry could see by the fierce blush going down his neck that he was still a bit embarrassed. But he could also see the little squint to his eyes that the brunette suspect was caused by a smile. 

“ I-I sure hope so. It would be super awkward if we didn't. Being neighbors and all.” Sal said, voice a bit shaky. 

“ Yeah. But I don't think you would have to worry about that. You seem to be a really cool guy.” Larry gave Sal a winning smile to help him ease up a bit. He wasn't one to be put off by crass humor and wanted the little guy to know he didn't need to be embarrassed. 

“ Yeah I try to be friendly with everyone.” Sal said and then hesitated. He looked down for a moment. Seeming to contemplate what he was going to say next.“ But… my husband is another story. I know he means well but he's not the most sociable. I remember that Robert would actively avoid him if I wasn't around.”

Larry blanched at the word husband. Something unpleasant twisted at the bottom of his stomach. Right. His mom had told him his neighbors had been newlyweds. Meaning this beautiful person was very unavailable and most likely very uninterested in Larry. God he was so fucking stupid. Here he was drooling all over a married man. 

“ Really? Robert was always the sort of guy that could make friends with anyone.” Larry asked to cover his surprise. Robert had always been super kind to everyone. Even himself when he was a rowdy teen that liked to bug the other tenants when he was bored. So it was quite strange to hear that he would actively avoid his neighbor. It made him wonder what exactly Sal's husband did to put Robert off so much.

“ Yeah I got that vibe from him too. I'm really glad he moved in with such a cool girl. He really deserves to be happy.” Sal hesitated again before continuing. “It's just Travis had this habit of getting under people's skin. He totally doesn't mean anything by it, but if he ever bothers you just come to me.”

“ Noted.” Larry didn't know how else to respond. The name Travis did sound familiar to him though, but he couldn't place where he might have heard it before. It made him feel vaguely angry for some reason. “Anyways since you so generously helped this idiot out of his own mess. I guess you deserve to see what's in this big ass box.” 

“ Hell yeah, dude! Let's get this inside your place so you can show me!” Sal exclaimed, more than happy to move on from that awkward topic. Why had he mentioned his husband in the first place? Maybe he just didn't want Larry to be put off by Travis less than friendly demeanor. He didn't want the opportunity of a new friend to be ruined like it had been with Robert. 

The two were able to heft up the large box and scoot their way into Larry's waiting apartment. It was a mirror of his own home, but completely void of furniture. Just a couple of boxes and big black garbage bags littered around the open space. They set the box down in the center of the living room and Larry set off to find a box cutter. Sal sat down on the plush carpet. He could tell it had been shampooed and thoroughly vacuumed in preparation for the new tenants arrival. It was soft under his legs and the room was so warm. He felt so much more comfortable sitting on the floor in this empty room than he had in his own home lately. That made him a little sad. 

To distract himself from that line of thought Sal scanned around the room to take a gander at his new neighbors stuff. His attention was brought to a corner of the room that was populated with various sizes of canvases propped up against the wall. They all looked to be completed pieces depicting somber landscapes and dark color palettes. They really spoke to Sal's tastes and he wanted to go over and take a closer look but Larry came back with the aforementioned box cutter. 

“ Here we go.” The taller man said as he knelt beside the box. He smoothly ran the blade along the packing tape and sat back on his haunches. “ Wanna do the honors?”

Sal eagerly nodded and took no preamble as he tugged the two flaps apart. He reached his hand in and pulled out the first thing he touched; a Smashing Pumpkins record. The masked man gasped in delight and dug into the box again and again, pulling out obscurest punk, hard rock, and metal treasures.

“ Dude! This is wicked cool! You have quite the collection.” Sal said looking up at the other in adoration. 

“ Ha. Thanks man. I owe you one dude. These would've been trashed if you hadn't ninja’d your way over and caught them.” Larry admitted with blush on his cheeks and a coy smile. This cutie complimenting his music tastes was a solid ego boost. 

“ No, really it's no problem at all. You don't owe me anything.” 

“ Aw come on. You can't be a totally badass hero, save the day, and not expect anything in return.” Larry chuckled. Without even thinking he dove into the box and started to shuffle the contents around until he found what he was looking for. He pulled out a gently used CD that still looked brand new and shoved it in Sal’s direction. “Here. A token of my gratitude.”

Sal took the item and looked it over. It was a Sisters of Mercy CD, the same band that he was wearing on his tee shirt. Sal looked back up at Larry with excitement sparkling in his icy blue eyes. Sal felt something he hadn't felt in a long time, the fluttering of butterflies in his stomach. “I-I can have this?” 

“ Well of course you can, Sal. What's a knight in shining armor without a trophy of his accomplishments?” 

“ Ugh dude, way to make it lame.” Sal groaned out in fake annoyance, making Larry laugh in response. Sal hugged the CD to his chest.“ ...But thanks anyways”

 

The two didn't say more than that and took to digging out more CDs and vinyls. They both settled into a comfortable silence as both read track lists and admired album art. Sal felt so warm and cozy here in this strangers empty apartment. Conversation felt effortless between the two, like they were old friends. Sal looked back up at Larry as he was inspecting a Marilyn Manson CD. Sal wanted to tease the other for listening to Manson but he got caught up staring at the man. 

Larry looked tired, the bags and dark circles under his eyes made that very apparent. He gave off that dark brooding alternate vibe that Sal loved so much. His face was slim and detailed with sharp features. Not to mention his huge beak-ish nose and large dark mole under his right eye. The man was handsome in his own unique way. Sal felt a tad guilty for thinking that way but he couldn't deny his new neighbor had attractive qualities. 

Sal was startled from his staring by a blaring ringtone. It was a metal song by a band he didn't recognize. Sal made a mental note to ask Larry about it later, since he liked the sound. Larry took his phone from his pocket and looked away from the album he was holding to see the caller ID. 

“Awe shit.” The brunette muttered to himself. He looked back up at Sal and their eyes met again. “I gotta take this.” 

“ Yeah, don't worry.” Sal said as he watched Larry stand up to his full height. They guy was a giant. Well at least he was compared to Sal's 5 '4” stature. Larry made his way towards the door so he could take the call outside. Which was odd to Sal since this was the guys the apartment. Sal should be the one stepping outside if the guy wanted privacy. That's when the masked man noticed how absurd the situation he was in was. He was in the apartment of a man he just met not 15 minutes prior, going through his stuff, and talking and joking like they've known each other for years. He didn't even know the guy but he felt...something between them. 

“ Hey, Mom.” Sal heard Larry say into the receiver of his phone before he slipped out the door into the hallway. Sal looked down into his lap when the Sisters of Mercy CD rested on his thighs. He smiled down at it. The butterflies returned.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you enjoy please leave kudos or a comment! It'll mean the world to me! Thank you!


	3. Authors note

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I'm very long-winded so here's a TLDR: Story is on hiatus until December. I won't be dropping it but I am unable to continue at this time. Thanks for the comments and kudos!

Hello friends,

It's been months since my last update and I think I owe you guys more than radio silence. So I thought I would be able to work on this fic whenever I had the spare time but as you can see from the four months of nothing... that's not the case. My schedule is just too full and I've been stretching myself too thin. And I really didn't want to just fall off the earth, I kinda don't like it when other authors do that ( I understand it, just don't like it). So my second job is coming to an end in December so I'll be able to post again then. Sorry for the months with no word and I'll see you in December. 

Thanks.

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, friends!
> 
> This is my first fic both in this fandom and in general, so I'm sorry if it's bad? Unbeta'd so there are most likely a million mistakes. Constructive criticism is always welcome! 
> 
> It took me about three weeks to write this first chapter and I still don't fully love it. I work two jobs so updates will be sporadic (sorry). But don't worry I will be updating unless stated otherwise. 
> 
> If you enjoy please leave kudos or a comment! It'll mean the world to me! Thank you!


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